The American based deathmetallers in Emblazoned have released their debut material in the shape of a 5 track long EP. Technically it is only four tracks as the first track, the intro, is - let’s say - atmospheric silence.

The band’s origin shines through in the music. The sound is American and modern. Modern in the sense that it might be labelled by the record company as blackened death metal, but the music got a few layers and touches that fans of modern deathcore and such as will find interesting. Mainly because Emblazoned tend to stick to classic deathmetal, but polishes it off with some good production. The blackened label might be to spice it up as it is quite cool to sound like Behemoth now a day. Emblazoned doesn’t.

There is not much original about Emblazoned. It doesn’t sound bad, the production is well done and instruments and vocal are handled very well, but it just never gets interesting or rise above average. Brutal doesn’t always do it and it takes a bit more work to rock the socks of the listener than melodic brutality.

The music is too straight forward and lacks a bit of bonding with the listener. It’s a shame because this could actually be quite interesting if the songwriting was approached with more creativity.

Featuring current and former members of Jungle Rot and Decrepit Birth, Emblazoned are here to bring the world into their sacrilegious torment. The Living Magisterium is a blast of 5 tracks of blackened death metal, with a buzz saw guitar tone and machine-like frantic drumming. It’s influences maybe from a bygone era, but this EP sounds as fresh and new as any other release in the extreme could do in 2013.

It has been a long 8 years of slow activity for this US four piece, and their return to the world of releasing CD has kicked off with bang. Extinction Of Creation bursts out from the minute and a half long intro and launches into frantic chromatic guitar riffs tremolo picked with the fury of a lunatic. It is on this track that Jeff Plewa’s vocals are shown to be guttural and raspy, in the typical blackened death metal style, incorporated and popularised by other bands such as Belphegor and Poland’s Behemoth.

The saying “don’t judge a book by its cover” makes much more sense in musical terms when translated into “don’t judge an album by its cover”, but we all know that very often this actually far from the truth in the world of metal. The artwork to The Living Magisterium depicts the Pope, releasing evil and serpents into the world through the palm of his hands. Blasphemous and viscous, this is an excellent representation of what to expect musically from the Wisconsinners.

Refuge in Darkness is a personal highlight, opening with the catchiest and yet most atmospheric riff on the record. The riff remains for some time, but the “Pulveriser’s” drumming keeps thing interesting with variation in his tightly played beats and blasts. Ripping into an excellent punk riff for the chorus, there is almost a sing-a-long factor to the music, which can only make for a more memorable track overall.

Closing with the moody In Ex Cathedra, Emblazoned show that they aren’t a one trick pony, but everything on the record gels well, helped along by the great production and variety in the songs. This is a great return for Emblazoned, and I certainly recommended keeping an eye on this band for the future, let’s just hope it doesn’t take another 8 years!